Naruto: Winds and Changes

She did not even have the chance to fall down as Neji continued striking her so fast that it looked too many as if her body was just jerking back and forth from an unknown force. Finally it seemed to end and Ayako began to sway where she stood. Hayate realizing what was happening announced the winner but Neji wasn't listening. Neji powered up another Juuken strike and aimed for Ayako's heart.

"AYAKO!" Yugito shouted as she saw what was happening, but realized she was too far away to do anything.

Everyone else saw it as well and even though they realized they were too far away, was about jump over the railing to try and stop Neji from killing the Kumo kunoichi. It was all for naught as Neji hand hit Ayako's chest, right where her heart would be.

Only for Ayako to disappear in a puff of smoke and be replaced with a log.

Eyes widened as they recognized the signs of a Kawarimi but were confused about how it happened, since Ayako had been pretty much depleted of chakra and her tenketsu were undoubtedly closed off even if she did have some left in her reserves. It was then that people noticed Ayako on the other side of the arena, directly behind Neji, and in the arms of one Uzumaki Naruto.

"What the hell was that teme!" Naruto shouted as he gently laid a barely conscious Ayako on the ground. Neji looked surprised as he spun around, but glared when he realized who it was.

"Uzumaki, you shouldn't interfere in another's battle."

"The battle was over shitstain!" Naruto growled out the words. While he knew this was a battle and people got hurt in them, what Neji did was uncalled for and vicious in the blonde's mind.

"Were you not listening to the proctor announcing you as the winner!" Naruto stood up and backed away from Ayako as Yugito and several medics ran out to Ayako and get her on a stretcher.

He looked at the girl who had lost conscious some time ago and growled. While he did not know her, he hated it when people were unnecessarily cruel to others, especially women since his two greatest friends and one of the people he looked up to most were women.

He turned back to Neji and his eyes flashed red for a second, "You'd better hope I don't fight your sorry ass in the finals! Because if I do, I'm going to knock it back to the age of the Rikudou Sennin!"

Gai appeared beside Neji and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Neji, I'm disappointed in you. I know why you hate Kumo, but blaming it on someone that was not responsible for what happened is just as wrong as what they did."

Neji sneered as he shrugged Gai's hand off and went up to the stairs.

Sighing Naruto walked back up as well to see his teammates and several other people staring at him in surprise. "What? Is there something on my face?"

"Dobe, how did you move so fast?" asked Sasuke.

Naruto gave a nonchalant shrug, "I've been working on my speed."

Sasuke frowned as Naruto walked past him. The blond leaned against the railing as everyone turned their attention back to the board. Naruto winced as he stared at his wrist and the dent that was in his guard from Neji's attack.

It looks like my speed jutsu is still incomplete…I should have been able to move fast enough to not get hit.

He made a mental note of any other injuries and grimaced as he sensed the minor pain in his legs, it was a good thing he had been expecting something to happen or he would have not been able to use the technique at all due to the time it took to prepare, and even then it still hurt.

'What technique are you- oh!' Kyuubi said as she went through his memories to see what he was talking about, 'It looks close to finished though. It's definitely faster then that Shunshin you ningen use that's for sure.'

'That's because I made it combat oriented. I noticed back in Nami that Shunshin had several powerful weaknesses aside from the standard swirl of leaves or smoke. That kind of covering only works on lower level opponents and It's easier to track, so I need something better.'

"Well when we get out of here I will help you where I can," Kyuubi reflected on how odd it felt for her to actually offer some help to someone, but justified herself by saying it was to help with her continued survival. As an after thought she added, "Though, I'm only really good with and the techniques I myself created.'

Naruto gave the equivalent of raising a mental eyebrow as Kyuubi offered help. For a moment he thought about rejecting it, but soon realized that having someone with as much knowledge as Kyuubi may prove beneficial. 'Thanks Kyuubi,' he said before turning his attention to the board to see who would fight next.

Haruno Sakura vs. Sabaku No Temari

Temari smirked as she jumped down the railing onto the arena floor, "Looks like I get another fan girl. How boring."

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